One of the most anticipated fights of the year is the one that will take place in September between Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Terence Crawford in Las Vegas.
And while most predictions lean towards a straightforward victory for the Mexican champion, there are those who give the benefit of the doubt to the Nebraska boxer.
Among them is Dmitry Bivol, the Russian who defeated Canelo in 2022, being the second boxer to have managed to defeat him in his entire career, and who now advises Crawford ahead of the September fight.
Although Canelo’s size advantage over Crawford is notorious, as he will have to move up from 154 to 168 pounds for the fight, the Russian believes that ‘Bud’ has good skills to give the Mexican a battle
“My first reaction, of course, was about the size of Crawford,” Bivol said in an interview with The Ring.
“Is it OK for him to go up two weight classes or not? But then I saw him in Dubai maybe a month ago. I thought, ‘He’s big’. He has very good skills,” he continued
Does Bivol think Crawford can upset Canelo?
Bivol pointed out that Crawford is one of his favorite fighters and ventured to say: “He is capable of winning this fight. But there are many details that we do not know.”
“We don’t know how he will handle it. He needs to get used to the power and pressure of 168 pounds because it’s a big difference, to be honest (…) Maybe he will get used to it and how he will feel. But he is capable. He has good skills. He is uncomfortable and can use both hands. That benefits him,” said Bivol.
The Russian indicates that in addition to the physical aspect, if he wants to beat Canelo, Crawford must be mentally prepared.
“If you’re mentally prepared, you won’t have any trouble with the punches… Alvarez has good defense. It’s one of his virtues. He uses his body a lot,” he said.
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